Published 09.11.2022
New blue doors have been fitted to the toilet facilities at Hinchingbrooke Hospital to help improve the experience for people living with dementia, and their carers.
The doors were installed thanks to a very generous charitable donation from a resident in Huntingdon who wanted to support the development of more dementia-friendly environments and purchase new dementia-friendly aids for patients and staff to use.
Blue is known to be one of the last colours to leave our sight as it deteriorates. So not only will the blue doors help a person living with dementia make sense of the world around them, it will also help people with delirium, sight problems or frail older people.
Alison Gray, Dementia Specialist Nurse, at North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust said: “Transforming our clinical environments into dementia-friendly spaces will have maximum impact on the health and wellbeing of our patients, both mentally and physically. Their immediate surroundings can make all the difference to their quality of life.
“The Dementia Team, along with the Hospital Estates Team, have identified and transformed the doors in both the inpatient and public areas because it is important to support independence and provide a safe environment by making toilets easily identifiable.
“The blue door with the yellow signage provides a more identifiable way to the toilet, and the inside of the door is also blue with clear yellow signage saying: ‘Way Out’, which helps to avoid confusion. This has been a great help on the wards for inpatients.
“The ‘Way Out’ sign was highlighted as a suggestion a by one of our service users living with dementia. We are extremely grateful to the donor and look forward to sharing our other dementia-friendly initiatives that have been made possible as a result of this amazing donation in the near future.”
Find out more about North West Anglia Hospitals' Charity here.
ENDS
Photo description: Sherly Binu, Dementia Advisor at North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust, demonstrating the blue door on an inpatient ward at Hinchingbrooke
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